Geknoei met leeftijden vijf door dierentuin Dhaka (Bangladesh) gekochte giraffen - Na aankoop september 2008 stierven drie giraffen binnen 14 maanden

Livestock DG suspended over giraffe purchase

22-02-2010 BDNews24, Bangladesh


Dhaka, Feb 22 (bdnews24.com) – The acting head of the livestock department has been put under suspension on charges of corruption regarding purchase of giraffes for the Dhaka Zoo, a ministry official said on Monday.

Dr. Habibur Rahman, acting director general, was removed from duty "in the interests of investigation", said the official.
Livestock and fisheries minister Abdul Latif Biswas and secretary Sharful Alam approved the order, which also made deputy director Dr Sunil Kanti Gayen the acting head of the department.
According to the ministry, five giraffes were bought in September 2008 but three of them died after fourteen months, prompting the government to launch an investigation into the age of the animals.

The investigation committee report says that the giraffes were not purchased following the circular issued by the zoo. According to that circular, the zoo was looking for giraffes between 18 to 24 months old, but the ones purchased were aged from five and a half to six years.

The probe body also found evidence of corruption and misappropriation of funds in the purchase of the five giraffes, as officials falsely represented the animals as younger and more costly, which incurred a loss of nearly Tk 5 crore for Dhaka Zoo.

Probe committee chief Shamsul Kibria, a joint secretary at the fisheries and livestock ministry, told bdnews24.com on Jan 31 that they found "flaws" in representation of the ages of the giraffes.

He said he had also warned those who were involved in the purchase saying divisional actions might be taken against them if irregularities were proved.

Kibria also said the probe could implicate the then deputy director of the livestock department Dr Habibur Rahman, who later became the acting DG.

(Bron: http://www.bdnews24.com/)